Muv-Luv Alternative

Why is March such a painful month for us? It seems like every march we get bombarded with a bunch of cool stuff that we all want all at once. Do companies think that we've recovered from the holidays by now and can affo...

Nov 21 //
Jeremy Emerje Crocker
Max Factory has updated their blog with a gallery for their Dougram model kit. It's very impressive looking with just having the canopy frame painted and stickers applied.
Have you seen Good Smile Company's new Picktam line of face changing rubber straps? Of course their first series is for Attack of Titan. They're about the size of a Nendoroid Petit and like a Nendoroid all of the parts are interchangeable. Plus they're making bonus expressions as well.
Been to the Good Smile Company website recently? It's been completely overhauled and Kahotan has posted a guide to all of its new features and there are a lot!
Speaking of the GSC website, they've got a preview up of the upcoming Nendoroid Neptune from Hyperdimension Neptunia. She's being bundled with the seventh volume of the anime DVD and Blu-ray in Japan. She's a full figure that comes with two expressions, a bunch of arms, and a game controller to hold. Now make a figma!
Bandai has put up a video for their new Sailor Moon Moon Stick prop replica, or what they're calling a "Proplica". I don't know if the quality is enough that I would call it a prop, but it is shiny.
AMINIMAL Studio has started a Kickstarter project called Inkimals which allows users to customize their own 3D printed designer figures. They're still a long ways from their goal so show them some support. I'm really impressed with what 3D printers can do with color these days.
Hobby Search Tweeted an updated prototype shot of KanColle's Yukikaze figure from Aoshima. She's looking cute!
Hobby Search also Tweeted this pair of super cool Ghibli 3D puzzles from Ensky. I want them!
wieselhead posted a great photo review of Kobato Hasekawa from Haganai by Kotobukiya. So cute and love the backdrops!
Hevesh5 uploaded this great video of domino tricks. With over 10 million views and counting there's some really cool stuff to see in here.
AmiAmi blog has posted a feature on the upcoming IDOLM@STER Umi Kouaska figure from MegaHouse. We got our first good look at her in magazine scans back in September and she's looking even better now.
Tentacle Armada did an extensive photo gallery of Meiya Mitsurugi from Muv-Luv Alternative by Kotobukiya. Looks amazing!
Argonaut Resins is doing some experiments with metal cold cast Tutz. First up are these great looking aluminum casts with more tests coming soon.
GSC's Shinsotsu (New Recruits) blog updated with a neat post showing how Nendoroid package layouts are decided. Here I thought it was just magic.
The Animate Osaka Nipponbashi store has an employee that's causing quite the buzz among female customers. Crunchyroll has a post with lots of pictures and videos about Yuya Uchida, a real otaku with a thing for fighting games and older women. He says he works nearly everyday so if you happen to be touring Osaka...
Neath Grim has done a review of Max Factory's 25th Anniversary Belldandy and Holy Bell figure from Oh, My Goddess! Those are some really great photos!
And that's it for another week. Be sure to come back next week for more small servings of all the things you love.

Come play with these!Hello and welcome back to another week of Tomopop LinkUP! In one week from today we'll be celebrating Thanksgiving here in America and I for one am looking forward to getting stuffed on some turkey! Even though it's a popular...

She is pretty as a picture. Love the colors!Kotobukiya recently gave us a preview of their latest figurine Kagami Sumika based on Muv-Luv Alternative. I really appreciate the wide range of complimenting colors used for her character, from her red hair to yellow ri...

Kotobukiya are a company in fine fettle and that was reflected in their booth, with a vast array of figures spread out across a variety of different ranges, franchises and styles.
The biggest news out of the booth was p...

Kotobukiya news is trickling in and I've spotted a few figures to get excited about. First up is a colored version of Kasumi Yashiro from Muv-Luv Alternative. It's a bunny outfit figure done by 4-Leaves, but may be a bit racy...

Jun 30 //
Tianxiao MaFigure Name: Cryska Barchenowa Eishi Strengthening Equipment ver.Figure Maker: KotobukiyaRetail Price: US$89.99Available at: Koto US
Cryska hails from Muv-Luv Alternative Total Eclipse. I haven't seen the show, but I've read that it's about mankind being locked in a (losing) war against aliens. The summary kind of sounds like Strike Witches though I'm sure it's not that similar. Cryska comes from the show's Soviet Union, although her design doesn't bear much resemblance to an actual Russian...
I rather like the design of the box. It's nothing fancy, but I like the sunset look of the background.
A few extras are packed in: a pistol, the base, and a few loose pieces of rubble. The only "assembly" you have to do is to slide the pistol into Cryska's left hand. Using the base is completely optional as she'll sit up just fine without it. Kotobukiya has been using rubble-themed bases for several of their 1/7-scale figures, so Cryska would fit right in with them.
Here is that promised backside. The design of her suit serves to emphasize the shape of her butt. It actually looks like she'd be walking around with the worst wedgie ever.
We shouldn't ignore the good work Kotobukiya did for Cryska's front side. Her facial expression is kind of vacant, but they have done a nice job sculpting it. I like the way it's framed by the hair too. Most of all, I like that Cryska's chin strap... thing... does not look awkward at all. It was kind of distracting on the Yui Takamura figure, but on Cryska it blends into the rest of the suit much better.
The suit is very well detailed, though that can get overshadowed by Cryska's bust. Her breasts look almost like actual melons. The suit design accentuates this part of her body as well.
I don't have much to complain about other than this seam in her hair, which is present on many figures. Hair styles that are smooth on top are susceptible to this simply due to the way figures are assembled.
Cryska's lone accessory is her pistol, which I'd assume is a Makarov given her Soviet affiliation. DayZ fans should have fond memories of the little trooper. It's pretty well detailed here. I lamented in my Vash the Stampede review that his revolver didn't look very good, but I'm happy with the way Kotobukiya handled all the fine detailing for this Cryska figure.
Can you describe a woman's stomach as "charming?" Thanks to the skin-tight suit, we can see the contours of Cryska's belly and navel. You can also see how clean the lines are between the contrasting light and dark areas. The light areas are extra-glossy, whereas the other parts of the suit have more of a satin sheen.
Kotobukiya has done a fine job with this Cryska figure, and I feel that the manufacturing quality matches the price point. I don't have any sentimental attachment to the character, so I probably wouldn't have bought this on my own. For Muv-Luv Alternative fans and admirers of Cryska's, though, this figure is sure to be a winner.
[Thanks to Kotobukiya for this review sample!]

The shiniest butt I've seen in a whileIf there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I'm a fan of glossy butts. Characters in sci-fi anime often need to get into skin-tight body suits to do something or other, so I get plenty of opportunities to see shi...

Same character, different takesYesterday there were two different previews for figures of the same character, so I figured I'd lump them together here.
The figma blog had their preview, showing all the accessories and the usual stuff. Max Factory's f...

A must get if you ordered CryskaAh, Muv Luv Alternative: Total eclipse, you managed to somehow make me appreciate my least favorite genre of anime, horror types. You did so by throwing in amazing amounts of pretty women and mechs, both of which I ...

Yeah sure, Kotobukiya's been making the Muv-Luv girls in their skin-tight suits as of late. Yui got that treatment not long ago. But remember when they put her in a more elegant outfit? I find that version much sexier than ev...

Kotobukiya's booth at Wonder Festival 2013 Winter was packed with a ton of new prototypes, along with a few old favorites like the Yu-Gi-Oh! figures and Wolfwood.
Your list of figures in our gallery includes:
Blac...

She is a very limber lady.Thanks to Figma blog we are able to bring you a preview of the latest Figma by Max Factory, Cryska. She hails from Muv-Luv Alternative Total eclipse. If you want to see the show, it is streaming over at Cr...

We've got the rest of this month's magazine scans - that eternal wellspring of anime/PVC news - and there's a bit of old and new all mixed in.
MegaHouse's 1/8-scale Yunoha Thrul from Aquarion Evol, now painted. She's shown w...

We've seen this beauty before, but I figured more body suits would be good for your health. This is Kotobukiya's Cryska Barchenowa in her Eishi outfit, which happens to be perfectly colored to highlight her curves. It doesn't...

Comiket 83 is underway and and Max Factory didn't come empty handed. As promised they brought along Sword Art Online's Asuna to give the public it's best look at the new figma. The sculpt still looks great to me, but the...

Asuna from Sword Art Online and Cryska Barchenowa from Muv-Luv finally revealed.It was a few months ago that the figma version of Sword Art Online's Asuna was announced along side series hero Kirito. Kirito just went up for pre-order for the first time only days ago and this same month we're getting our ...

A very pretty Cryska. Will you be her hero?In recent months we've seen a lot of new figurines from various companies of characters hailing from the animated series Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse. One of them was Kotobukiya's excellent 1/7th scale Yui Takamura...

Last week we brought you a preview of Good Smile Company's Nendoroid of Yui Takamura from the currently airing show Muv-Luv Alternative Total Eclipse. I'm pleased to announce that Yui is now available for pre-order.
As mentio...

Power suits and Figmas usually work very well together, but there is something a little off to me about Max Factory's Figma version of Yui Takamura. Perhaps I have been spoiled on the Nendoroid version of Yui, but her Figma c...

Though I mostly know Kotobukiya as a maker of anime figures, they've been featuring a lot of American properties as of late. It's nice to see Kotobukiya putting the focus back on their anime figures at MegaHobby Expo. Here ar...

Good Smile Company's previews in this month's scans didn't wow me, but maybe you guys will find something you like.
First up is the green-haired gal, a 1/7 scale figure of Nozomi Akiyama from Se Kirara. Despite it being an er...

Who loves mosaics for figure previews!? I know Kotobukiya does! We just saw them do that recently for their Cu-poche Saber from Fate/stay night and now the company has even more as they get us all excited for MegaHobby EXPO 2...

It's obvious that the ladies of Muv-Luv Alternative Total Eclipse have a certain aspect about them that cannot be overlooked. Figure manufacturers have also taken notice to this certain aspect, especially Alpha Max. In fact, ...

Kotobukiya had a diverse array of products on display at the Miyazawa Model Exhibition. You can see some of their character model kits, such as the Combat-san Rookie, Yotsuba&!'s Danbo (and miniature version) and Yotsuba,...

While Wave does a good job with their Beach Queen line of ladies, I think ALPHAMAX has them beat. As seen from the Miyazawa Model Exhibition, their ladies are seemingly larger and of better quality. Then again, you usually ha...

Magazine scans are so much fun because there are always some great plastic boobies to pine after! This time we dip into several franchises. Of course Queen's Blade is involved.
Alphamax brings a pair of 1/6-scale figures. Fir...

Though we've some of what Good Smile Company has to offer at the Dengeki 20th Anniversary Festival from last weekend, the latest magazine scans show that they still have some other products up their sleeve.
The collaboration ...

TakaraTomy is a mix bag of properties and then some as evident at the Dengeki 20th Anniversary Festival. The company showed off some of its popular properties including ZOIDS, Transformers, and TomyTec's line of train girls.
...

[Update: Nendoroid Alice from Momoiro Taisen Pairon and figma Black Gold Saw TV version added to the gallery.]
I can't keep up! Earlier we saw a handful of new and upcoming figma and Nendoroid figures coming down the lin...

Kotobukiya earlier this week teased some upcoming products for their Hobby Exhibiition event in Akihabara. The event has come and the figures have been revealed though the super sleuths of the internet knew very much what was...

So, with announcements of Nendoroid Iron Man, new Black Rock Shooter TV Animation Nendos, and a bunch of new Miku Nendos including the first Nendoroid Jumbo, you probably think ... yeah, you know where I'm going with this, so...

ZORKOkay, what on earth happened to Tomopop? Why is it so desolate nowadays?2-DAfter one year of collecting minus a Castle Crasher figure and amiibos. Desperately trying to cut back but just seen a cheap Tifa figure on eBay.....Cornelius RoyIf you're an Avatar fans and noticed Chief Beifong figure on SDCC, the dream lives on.
http://zwyerind.com/ there's a banner labelled coming soon...Jeremy Emerje CrockerWeekly top sales are on an indefinite hiatus. My source, Toynes.jp, abruptly stopped making regular postings including rankings. I'll resume whenever they do. :(Niero GonzalezTesting Quickposts! You can now use Tomopop like Twitter